The revisions include extensive usage of politically correct buzzwords (and parodies thereof), deliberately stiff moralizing dialogue and narration, inclusion of modern concepts and objects (such as health spas, mineral water, and automobiles), and often feature a plot twist that reverses the roles of the heroes and villains of the story (for example, the woodsman in Little Red Riding Hood is seen by Red Riding Hood not as a heroic saviour but as a “sexist” and “speciesist” interloper, and Snow White’s evil stepmother ends up with a positive portrayal while the prince and the seven dwarves are portrayed as chauvinistic).

Politically Correct Bedtime Stories was Garner’s first published book (or, in the words of his similarly satirical biography blurb from the book, “his first processed tree carcass”). More than 2.5 million copies have been sold in the United States and it has since been translated into 20 languages. Garner wrote two follow-up books: Once upon a More Enlightened Time: More Politically Correct Bedtime Storiesand Politically Correct Holiday Stories: For an Enlightened Yuletide Season,the latter book satirizing political correctness during the Christmas holiday season. In 1998, the three books were compiled into an omnibus collection called Politically Correct, the Ultimate Storybook. All editions of the Politically Correct titles are currently out of print.

THE EMPEROR’S NEW CLOTHESFar away, in a time long past, there lived a traveling tailor who found himself in an unfamiliar country. Now, tailors who move from place to place normally keep to themselves and are careful not to overstep the bounds of local decency. This tailor, though, was overly gregarious and decorum-impaired, and soon he was at a local inn, abusing alcohol, invading the personal space of the female employees, and telling unenlightened stories about tinkers,dung-gatherers, and other tradespeople.The innkeeper complained to the police, who grabbed the tailor and dragged him in front of the emperor. As you might expect, a lifetime of belief in the absolute legitimacy of the monarchy and in the inherent superiority of males had turned the emperor into a vain and wisdom-challenged tyrant. The tailor noticed these traits and decided to use them to his advantage.

The emperor asked, “Do you have any last request before I banish you from my domain forever?”

The tailor replied, “Only that your majesty allow me the honor of Grafting a new royal wardrobe. For I have brought with me a special fabric that is so rare and fine that it can be seen only by certain people – the type of people you’d want to have in -your realm – people who are politically correct, morally righteous, intellectually astute, culturally tolerant, and who don’t smoke, drink, laugh at sexist jokes, watch too much television, listen to country music, or barbecue.”

After a moment’s thought, the emperor agreed to this request. He was flattered by the fascist and testosterone-heavy idea that the empire and its inhabitants existed only to make him look good. It would be like having a trophy wife and multiplying that feeling by 100,000.

Of course, no such rarefied fabric existed. Years of living outside the bounds of normal society had forced the tailor to develop his own moral code that obliged him to swindle and embarrass the emperor in the name of independent craftspeople everywhere. So, as he diligently labored, he was able to convince the emperor that he was cutting and sewing pieces of fabric that, in the strictest objective sense of reality, didn’t exist.

When the tailor announced that he was finished, the emperor looked at his new robes in the mirror. As he stood there, naked as the day he was born, one could see how years of exploiting the peasantry had turned his body into an ugly mass of puffy white flesh. The emperor, of course, saw this too, but pretended that he could sec the beautiful, politically correct robes. To show off his new splendor, he ordered a parade to be held the next day.

On the following morning, his subjects lined the streets for the big parade. Word had spread about the emperor’s new clothes that only enlightened people with healthy lifestyles could see, and everyone was determined to be more right-minded than his or her neighbor.

The parade began with great hoopla. As the emperor marched his pale, bloated, patriarchal carcass down the street, everyone loudly oohed and ahed at his beautiful new clothes. All except one small boy, who shouted:
“The emperor is naked!”

The parade stopped. The emperor paused. A hush fell over the crowd, until one quick-thinking peasant shouted: “No, he isn’t. The emperor is merely endorsing a clothing-optional lifestyle!”

A cheer went up from the crowd, and the throngs stripped off their clothes and danced in the sun, as Nature had intended. The country was clothing optional from that day forward, and the tailor, deprived of any livelihood, packed up his needle and thread and was never heard from again.

(Any resemblance to the country, its rulers, its policy decisions, its judiciary and its people is clearly a complete figment of your imagination, and you should be ashamed of harbouring such unworthy thoughts)

25-year-old Bollywood actress Jiah Khan allegedly committed suicide on Monday night by hanging herself at her Juhu residence, police said. According to the police, her maid, watchman and neighbours are being interrogated to find out her last visitors.

Later she appeared as a supporting actress in Sajid Khan‘s multi starrer comedy film ‘Housefull’ (2010). This was her last film.

Jiah was brought up in England and had shifted to Mumbai recently to act in Hindi films.

Actor Dia Mirza reportedly broke the news of Jiah’s death on micro blogging site Twitter.

Police today questioned Suraj Pancholi, son of actor couple Aditya Pancholi and Zarina Wahab, to whom actress Jiah Khan had made her last phone call before ending her life.
25-year-old Jiah hanged herself at her Juhu residence between 11 PM and 11.30 PM yesterday, sending shock waves in Bollywood.

Jiah, according to police, last spoke to Suraj around 10:40 PM.

Suraj had gone to Juhu police station along with his actor parents and was being questioned, sources said.

According to Jiah’s mother Razia Khan, the actress, who made her dream debut opposite Amitabh Bachchan in ‘Nishabd’, was unhappy about her acting career. She had last appeared in a supporting role in Sajid Khan’s multi-starrer comedy ‘Housefull’ in 2010.

As per her mother, Jiah was exploring a career in interior designing besides acting in films.

Khan told the police that Jiah had gone to Hyderabad on June 2 for an audition which did not go well.

Her last rites have not yet been performed because the family is waiting for her friends and relatives to arrive from London, where she was born and brought up.

Police have also questioned her maid, watchman and neighbours to determine the cause of the alleged suicide.

The post-mortem examination at J J hospital suggested the death was caused due to hanging.

I’m neither Chetan Bhagat, nor am I Hansie Cronje, but here’s my five-point plan on how to be a successful spot-fixer and not get caught.

1.Communication is key. What is with this Chandila and Chawan? Who discusses which ball you’re going to drop over the hotel phone? Buy an iPhone and Face Time with each other.

Not only will nobody be able to track your scheming conversations, you’ll also get to see each other’s cheating faces. It’s also way more cosy than those strange stilted chats. Did Rajat Gupta and Rajaratnam not teach you anything? Oh sorry, to learn anything from them you’d need to read the newspapers and do something beyond throwing lavish parties.

Sreesanth and his cronies’ spot-fixing modus operandi leaves a lot to be desired! AFP

2.Diaries are a no-no. If you must record what payments are going to come your way and keep accounts, must you use a diary? That too, one with bilingual entries. Get with the times. Start a fake Gmail id. With that id, create a Google doc. Use these Google docs to tabulate and record your earnings. Basically, keep it simple because you’re stupid.

3. What kind of idiot deposits money from illegal transactions in his bank? Frankly, if you do that you should be jailed. For being an imbecile. Instead, use the cash – since it’s hardly a fortune by cricketing standards or even by Delhi-standards – to make ticket/hotel/clothes purchases. Spend the cash, you fool. Don’t collect it for a rainy day.

And definitely don’t collect it in your own bank account. Or ask for payment in cash. Maybe a gold brick? It is Sunil Dubai after all. His bathroom must be lined with gold bricks. Or tell them to send diamond earrings for your mum. Nothing says “I care” as much as gifts from the Dubai underworld. Be creative. It’s not that difficult.

4. Don’t forget to signal the bookie. Now this is of key importance. Even if your IQ is 25 or running in single figures, signal your bookie that you’re going to drop that over. What’s the point of giving 14 runs on an over, if no one pays you for it? And forget no one paying for it, because you’re a super imbecile and have struck an idiot deal, you end up paying the bookie. Doesn’t that just make you feel like an arse? Do you really want someone called Sunil Dubai to be mocking you at his next spot-fixer’s reunion party? The answer is, no. So keep a beeper on your watch which reminds ye-of-little-brain of the fact that big brother is watching and you have to twist that wristband now.

5.Grow some balls. At least hold your own for more than 30 minutes before singing like a canary. Nobody likes a crook who gives up so easily. And keep in mind, this is the Delhi police. Not known for their great investigative skills. Sulking, bawling and then spilling the beans are recipes for disaster. Not only is your cricketing career over, you’re not going to win any brownie points with your fixer friends.

Take a leaf out of Monica Bedi’s book. She stuck to her guns and kept repeating that she didn’t know anything about Abu Salem’s dealings. If you do that, even you’ll get to dance inNach Baliye. Nobody likes a crybaby. Really.

Like this:

New Delhi: Shamshad Begum, a pioneer of Bollywood’s music fraternity and the voice behind some of it’s most memorable hits, died in Mumbai after a long illness. She had celebrated her 94th birthday just days before.Shamshad Begum was born on April 14, 1919 in Amritsar. A movie buff, she was a K L Saigal fan and reportedly watched Devdas 14 times. She promised her father that she would never appear before the camera, and so forged a long and successful camera in the recording studio. In fact, so faithfully did she keep her promise to her father that the public at large did not know what she looked like till well into the 1970s.

Shamshad Begum made her singing debut on Peshawar Radio in 1947. She then sang for All India Radio as part of Delhi’s Crown Imperial Theatrical Company of Performing Arts. Her songs were frequently broadcast on AIR Lahore, bringing her voice to the notice of music directors.

Her very first mentors were sarangi maestro Ustad Hussain Bakshwale Saheb and composer Ghulam Haider. Shamshad Begum’s earliest film songs were in Ghulam Haider’s Khazanchi(1941) and Khandaan (1942). Ghulam Haider soon moved from Lahore to Mumbai, taking Shamshad Begum with him as part of his team.

Shamshad Begum’s unique voice and style of singing set her apart from contemporaries such as Geeta Bai, Amirbai Karnataki, Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle. She sang some of Hindi cinema‘s best-loved numbers between the 1940s and 1950s. Her hit parade, many of which have been remixed, include: Leke pehla pehla pyar and Kahin pe nigahen kahin pe nishana from C.I.D, Kabhi aar kabhi paar from Aar Paar, Mere piya gaye Rangoon fromPatanga, Saiyyan dil mein aana re from Bahar and Kajra mohabbatwala from Kismat, in which she sang not for the heroine, played by Babita, but for the hero, played by Biswajeet, in drag.

In 2009, Shamshad Begum received the Padma Bhushan, India’s third-highest civilian honour. The same year, she also received the O P Nayyar award for her contribution to the world of film music.

Shamshad Begum was married to Ganpat Lal Batto who died in 1955. She is survived by her daughter Usha and son-in-law.

“Every day, Change.org members win people-powered campaigns for social change”.

Just to give a background to those, who are reading about change.org for first time. It’s a popular and fast-growing website for petitions. In the last two years, Change.org has grown from 1 million to more than 25 million users, according to the site . It began as a liberal blogging site and then pivoted to become a hub for petitions, mostly with a liberal or populist bent.

Staring as dot.org domain name to its declaration that “our business is social good” to its certification as a B Corporation, Change.org positioned itself as a progressive force. It promised to run campaigns for “organizations fighting for the public good and the common values we hold dear—fairness, equality, and justice.” That’s no longer its mission. Something changed last year, The policy changed, ‘ partners’ became ‘advertisers ‘in the name openness, democracy and empowerment . So which means now they will accept paid promotions from conservative organizations, Corporations , that no bar. I had written Open letter to CEO Ben Rattray last year in which I said I will not participate but monitor change.org.

In India we have two petitions being hosted on change.org, one by victims and one by perpetrators ?

You think I am joking please read below

The Incident behind both the petitions :-

Late evening on 11 April 2013, a group of students from Nalsar Law University went to the Rain Club located in Banjara Hills, Hyderabad, for what was meant to be a farewell party for the graduating seniors.

When they stepped out of the club around 10.30pm to wait for their cab, one of the women students spotted someone taking their pictures with a mobile phone. She objected and demanded to see the mobile. The mobile turned out to be a dummy, without a card in it. When she further objected and demanded that the phone with which photos were taken be handed over, other media cameramen who were present began to film the altercation.

The students were outraged at this invasion of their privacy and the callous response of media cameramen who continued the harassment by following them to the car and persisting in filming them even as they were vehemently protesting this invasion.

The next morning several Telugu channels began showing the footage. Some websites also put up the footage. TV9, ABN Andhra Jyoti, Sakshi TV, Studio N, NTV, IdlyTV, News 24 .

The incident represents blatant sexual harassment of women in a public place, criminal intimidation of the women with threat of public defamation through media. The anchors of the channels repeatedly referred to the women as punch drunk, half naked, and nude, when the women students were dressed in strapless evening wear. One of the female anchors referred to their attire as “creepily offensive short clothes.” They also claimed that they were dancing in the club although the entire story was played out on the street and not inside the club. The media persons were not present inside the club. To make matters worse, CVR News put together several clips of provocative dancing from various sources, implying that the present incident was somehow connected to those. Significantly, while only a couple of channels were present outside the club and were involved in the incident, the story was generously shared with many other channels and web sites. All the channels replayed the footage provided by the offending channels without providing any opportunity for the victims of this coverage to respond or give their side of the story.

The channels also were assuming the tone of moral police, claiming that the students were “leaving Indian traditions in tatters by their dressing and behaviour”. The anchors of the channels took on the role of moral police by commenting on the young girls’ clothing, even as the channels’ staple fare for advertising revenue on their news bulletins comprises song and dance sequences from films and film events featuring skimpily clad women doing vulgar dances to vulgar lyrics. The reporters and anchors held forth on excessive freedom for women and its “devastating” effects on society.

The channels also falsely claimed that the students’ behaviour was condemned by women’s organizations even though they only showed the statements of two little-known local politicians, thereby misleading public opinion.

The media in our country has engaged in relentless sensationalism, resorting to cheap and lowly tactics to raise TRPs and viewership. This includes airing concocted stories; violating people’s privacy by taking video footage, morphing the images and airing it against completely fabricated and sensationalistic stories; secretly taking videos of people in private parties and clubs and extorting them; and engaging in harassing and abusive conduct. One such incident of unethical, irresponsible, and victimizing behaviour is an incident that occurred on the 121h of April, 2013 to college girls from NALSAR University of Law.The petition has reached 5000 plus signatures

And on the other hand, we also have change.org giving platform to the voyeuristic reporters .with a petition floated by Electronic Media Journalists’ Association of AP , asking to Condemn the action of a group of students who assaulted media persons addressed to, Manish Tiwari, I&B Minister, Govt of India , Prof. (Dr) Faizan Mustafa ,, Vice-Chancellor, Nalsar , Mrs D K Aruna, Minister of State in AP , Justice Mr M Katju, Chairperson, Press Council of India Justice Katju ,Justice Verma, Chairperson, News and Broadcasting Standards Authority ,Justice N V Ramana, Acting Chief Justice, High Court of Andhra Pradesh ,Hari Prasad, President of Electronic Media Journalists’ Association of AP Please note the targets of both petitions are same .

The petition says

Andhra Pradesh has the maximum number of television news channels not only in India but also in the entire world. The ratings and the importance of these channels show how reliable and responsible the media is in Andhra Pradesh. They never restore to cheap and lowly tactics. There is self-monitoring desk as well as the important organization NBA that keeps monitor on all the channels content.

This petition also has 5000 plus signatures

Now I want to ask change.org, which petition’s victory will be their victory ?

Wait a minute,

whoever wins or loses,

it’s a Win- Win situation for change.org.

As a big fans of freedom of speech, they claim their democractic platform. and well whoever wins. Change will be their submitting the petition claiming their VICTORY !! . But I wonder what will they do when they have to take a STAND ? So which petition will they push ? or will; they push both ? and then see pros and cons in context of the political situation and in a closed door meeting then thrash out two teams to work on these two petitions . Call both parties and weigh the probabilities and then take a call, keeping both parties in dark on probabilities ?.

So, guys wake up, all those who petition on change.org .This online platform is a for profit company , who through these petitions is trying legitimize their image as that of ACTIVISM .They also get commercial benefits through donations and sponsorships just by providing platform to all you ,under the garb of various human rights issues . VICTORY is for change.org

Change.org’s mission statement says ‘ to empower people everywhere to create the change they want to see, and we believe the best way to achieve that mission is by combining the values of a non-profit with the flexibility and innovation of a tech startup. ” They call themselves “social enterprise,” using the power of business for social good. “Social Enterprise,” is a term that’s gotten a lot of hold among people who start companies and want to make a difference in the world. But social enterprise as opposed to what? Anti-social enterprise?

Here is where Change.org’s business model comes into play. Change.org sells what are called “sponsored petitions” to its advertisers. Most are nonprofits–right now they include Amnesty International USA, Greenpeace and the Human Rights Campaign — but there’s nothing to prevent companies from sponsoring petitions. Tapping into its audience, Change.org collects names on those petitions and then sells those who opt in to the sponsor, for about $2 per name. Some advertisers get discounts, and other pay more, for example, for people in specific states. Here is a request to Change .org , please, on behalf of companies everywhere Spare us the pieties about how “our business is social good.”

Change.org is a digital media business. Like MTV or Facebook, It creates or aggregates content, the petitions, to attract an audience whose attention, in the form of email addresses, it sells to sponsors.

It’s not selling social change. It’s selling you and me. .

So here is my Appeal to all friends, activists, celebrating their victories, and petitions on change.org,

It’s time ….

If you’re a member at Change.org take action by unsubscribing from their list. At the very least they can’t profit further off your email.. If you see petitions passed around by friends on Change.org don’t sign them and inform them what’s going on. It’s important to Explore alternatives

Hopefully the activists in India will very soon have their own activist, accountable, and transparent platform.

The Emirati delegates were subsequently deported back to their home country.

According to an official statement released by the UAE delegation following the incident, it seems the religious police were unnerved by the presence of an unnamed female artist from the UAE.

“Her visit to the UAE stand was a coincidence as it was not included in the programme which we had already provided to the festival’s management,” said UAE delegation head Saeed Al Kaabi in his apology to festival officials.

Vedanta Resources plc is a London listed FTSE100 company which has brought death and destruction to thousands. 63% of it is owned by billionaire Anil Agarwal and his family through companies in various tax havens. It has been consistently fought by people’s movements but it is being helped by the British government to evolve into a multi-headed monster and spread across India and round the world, diversifying into iron ore in Goa, Karnataka and Liberia, Zinc in Rajasthan, Namibia, South Africa and Ireland, copper in Zambia and most recently oil in the ecologically fragile Mannar region in Sri Lanka.

Vedanta’s bauxite mining and aluminium smelters have left more than tenthousand displaced people landless, contaminated drinking water sources with ‘red mud’ and fly ash,and devastated vast tracts of fertile land in an area which has seen famine every year since 2007.Vedanta’s mine on the sacred Niyamgiri hills has been fought by Adivasi (indigenous)-led people’smovements for seven long years and has so far been stopped. This has rendered their subsidiaryVedanta Aluminium (VAL) a loss making company, starving it’s refineries at Jharsuguda and Lanjigarhof local bauxite.

In Goa:

Vedanta’s Sesa Goa subsidiary has been accused of large scale fraud and illegal mining.In June 2009 following a pit wall collapse which drowned Advalpal village in toxic mine waste, a 9year old local boy Akaash Naik filed a petition to stop the mine and mass protests later that yearhalted mining at one of Sesa Goa’s sites. In 2011 there were more major mine waste floods. In SouthGoa a 90 day road blockade by 400 villagers succeeded in stopping another iron ore mine. Sesa Goaare paying ‘silence funds’ to try and prevent similar action at their South Goa mine.

Vedanta subsidiary Sterlite has flouted laws without remorse, operatingand expanding without consent, violating environmental conditions, and illegally dumping toxiceffluents and waste. In 1997 a toxic gas leak hospitalised 100 people sparking an indefinite hungerstrike by a local politician and a ‘siege on Sterlite’ that led to 1643 arrests. Later that year a kilnexplosion killed two. An estimated 16 workers died between 2007 and 2011. Police recorded mostworkers deaths as suicides. Pollution Control Boards, judges and expert teams have on severaloccasions reversed damning judgements of the company, demonstrating large scale corruption andbribery. Activists are waging a court battle which has stopped operations for several short periods.

In Tamil Nadu, Mettur:

Vedanta bought MALCO ‘s aluminium complex at Mettur 2 yearsbefore permission for their Kolli Hills bauxite mines expired but continued to mine illegally for 10years. Five adivasi villages were disturbed and a sacred grove destroyed before activist’s petitionsstopped mining in 2008. Without local bauxite and with protests preventing bauxite coming fromNiyamgiri in Orissa the factory at Mettur was also forced to close. However, the abandoned andunreclaimed mines continue to pollute the mountains and a huge red mud dump by the Stanleyreservoir pollutes drinking water and blows toxic dust into the village.

In Chhattisgarh, Korba:

Vedanta bought the state owned BALCO’s alumina refinery, smelter andbauxite mines for ten times less than its estimated value in 2001 despite a landmark 61 day strike byworkers. Since then wages have been slashed and unionised workers are losing jobs. In 2009 afactory chimney collapsed, BALCO claimed 42 were killed, but in fact 60 – 100 people are stillmissing. Witnesses claim these workers from poor families in neighbouring states are buriedunderground in the rubble, which was bulldozed over immediately after the collapse

British Government’s special relationship with Vedanta

• The UK’s Department for International Development (DfID) and Department of Tradeand Industry (DTI) helped launch Vedanta on the London Stock Exchange andcontinues to support the company.
• Through the World Bank funded NGO Business Partners for Development, it hashelped Vedanta take over copper mines in Zambia . Although Vedanta has been finedfor poisoning the Kafue river and faced workers protests, the UK is helpingestablish it in Zambia by securing in the words of local NGOs “ a ‘champion’ withincentral government to further the ‘enabling environment’”.
• Meanwhile in Liberia in what has been described as one of the worst recordedconcession agreements in the country’s history Sesa Goa is accused of breach ofcontract and may have to pay damages of US$10 billion.
• Most recently when the Indian government held up Vedanta’s deal with EdinburghbasedCairn Energy by investigating Vedanta’s ability to manage strategic oil fields, UKgovernment officials, briefed “over dinner” by Cairn Energy, offered to “polish” and senda letter drafted by the company to the Indian Prime Minister to force the deal through.David Cameron even personally intervened, urging India to speed up’unnecessary delays’. As a result the Indian government caved in and allowed a dealwhich handed some 30% of India’s crude oil for a fraction of its worth to this notoriouscorporate.
• Vedanta’s Cairn India is now drilling for oil in the ecologically fragile off-shoreregion around Mannar in Sri Lanka – an area controlled by the Sri Lankan military.

Vedanta Resources, is attempting to claim to be social responsible via a huge advertising campaign. The latest is the social media campaign, ‘Khushi’, aimed at underprivileged children, is poised to complete one year. Launched on April 10, 2012. In this video we attack all tall claims of Vedanta Khushi Campaign.

The Reality is –

Vedanta has suffocated the life of Adivasis in Niyamgiri foothills. The entire area is overlapped with Red Mud. Most of humans, animals, birds and insects are infected with skin diseases. Proper medical facilities are unavailable; there is no sign of hospital. By pressures, by vicious means, by force, by paying less, Vedanta bought the farming and forest land of Local tribes. They cheated them by providing technical training to make them skillful workers in Vedanta Mines and factories, as soon as land got transferred, Vedanta thrown them out.

Red mud has converted all crop fields and forest into waste land, the vein is spreading. The river Vasamdhara is the main source of water for all constituents of habitats in Niyamgiri. Vedanta’s Red Mud resulted in converting drinkable water of Vasamdhara to polluted and toxic waste; it is causing dangerous skin diseases and cancer. Even Animals and birds are rejecting it to drink. The situation of Vasamdhara is same from Niyamgiri till Kalingapatnam. Amnesty International broke this harsh truth.

Niyamgiri foothills is a treasure of bauxite, Bauxite is a main component to make aluminum. According to statistic, Niyamgiri foothills contain 72 lakh million ton of bauxite. The average cost of 1 ton bauxite is approx 6500 INR, whereas all 72 lakh million ton is not awarded to Vedanta for mining. The prices are fixed very little, when Government awards a license to mine, it is simple to understand the covetous intentions of Vedanta by looking at the history and biology of Vedanta.

Government and Vedanta has fixed the price of Niyamgiri foothills, the predators have camped and pasted like a woodworm. Vedanta Aluminum Ltd is camped with crooked intentions in Laljiganj located at south Odisha . A fake kingdom of 700 Hectares expanded by cheating legally and eating illegally, hooks or crook they used every evil outfit.

Village Bundela initiated the revolution against Vedanta few years back, many voices were raised, and dozens of revolutionaries are martyred. There are few Tribal’s if they further replaced from this areas, they will lose their name from World map. They are already on the way of extinction because of Vedanta what a Price tag we have placed on forest and tribes in this materialistic world. We are the silent observer of slaughter of Humanity.

“There is absolutely no need to divide cinema region-wise. Except for the language, I don’t see any difference in cinema made in any part of the world. By dividing cinema based on its region, we are only taking that language for granted,” Kay Kay told IANS.

“We have catered enough to the masses with stupid films. Time has come to make films with certain calibre. I can understand Malayalam, Marathi, Tamil and Bengali. I’m ready to do films in these languages if I find something off the beaten path,” he added.

He admits language is a barrier when you do not understand it and adds: “One of the reasons I chose to work in ‘Udhayam NH4’ is because I can understand the language. I hate to mouth dialogues in a language I don’t understand.”

Why didn’t you do a Tamil film all these years?

“Honestly, I haven’t been approached. Moreover, I have been extremely busy with Hindi films. I have finally decided to diversify because I’m bored of being part of films that are made only to churn profits,” said Kay Kay.

His first Tamil film “Udhayam NH4” is a road movie. The upcoming film also features Siddharth Suryanarayan, Ashrita Shetty, Deepak, Ajai, Kalai and Karthi.

The film’s story has been penned by National Award-winning director Vetrimaaran; it is being directed by debutant Manimaran.

“I agreed to work in the film because of Vetri (Vetrimaaran). I consider him a modern-day filmmaker. He had a clear-cut view about what they were making and what they want from me,” he said.

“The personality of a director reflects in his or her cinema. I have heard about Vetri’s National Award-winning film ‘Aadukalam’, but I haven’t watched it yet. However, when I met him, I knew from his personality that he is not one of those directors catering to a particular type of audience,” he added.

Kay Kay plays a character who realises the power of love while chasing a couple across three states.

“It’s a road film that takes the characters on a journey from Karnataka to Tamil Nadu via Andhra Pradesh. Two lovers are being chased by the character I play and how in the process my character realises the power of love. This forms the story,” said the actor.

As far as work culture is concerned, Kay Kay doesn’t find any difference between Bollywood and the south.

“Bollywood has made good and bad films; so has the Tamil film industry. Even the organisation structure and work process in both these industries are much similar. The only difference I find is the language,” said Kay Kay.

The trend of remakes doesn’t excite Kay Kay.

“I always want to be part of something new and original. If a film is really worth being remade for larger audience, then I would love to be part of it. I wouldn’t mind being part of a remake if it’s done effectively with a purpose, but we all know why remakes are made.”

(Haricharan Pudipeddi can be contacted at haricharanpudipeddi@gmail.com)

Shri Pran Krishan Sikand, popularly known as Pran, the veteran film actor, has been conferred the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for the year 2012. He is the 44th Dada Saheb Phalke Award Winner. The award is conferred by the Government of India for outstanding contribution to the growth and development of Indian Cinema. The award consists of a Swarn Kamal, a cash prize of Rs.10 lakhs and a shawl. The award is given on the basis of recommendations of a Committee of eminent persons.
Shri Pran has given sterling performances in many films along with Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand and Raj Kapoor in 1950s and 60s. Pran’s performanceshave received acclaim in films like Azaad, Madhumati, Devdas, Dil Diya Dard Liya, Ram Aur Shyam and Aadmi, Ziddi, Munimji, Amar Deep, Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai, Aah, Chori Chori, Jagte Raho, Chhalia, Jis Desh Men Ganga Behti Hai. The list is long.
Born in the year 1920 in Delhi, Shri Pran started his career way back in 1940. He first ventured into photography but a chance meeting with a film producer got him his first role in a film called Yamla Jat. Shri Pran acted in several films, his base being Lahore in undivided India. His career experienced a brief pause due to partition in 1947. Subsequently he moved to Bombay. With the help of the famous writer Saadat Hasan Manto and actor Shyam, Pran got a break in the Bombay Talkies film Ziddi which had Dev Anand in the lead role. The film Ziddi brought him to limelight in the Bombay film industry and then there was no turning back.
His impressive performances have bestowed an entirely unique new dimension to the negative and character roles in Hindi cinema. His contribution to mainstream Hindi cinema is well recognized, assuring him the place of one of the most illustrious and celebrated actors of Indian film industry. His career spanned several decades. He has acted in over 400 films and in each one of them, he brought new mannerism and style, holding the audience spell bound by his acting.
Shri Pran is a recipient of a number of film awards including the Filmfare Award. He was also honoured with the Padma Bhushan.

Chic in a trouser-kurti ensemble, former actor and dancer Minoo Mumtaz is completely at ease as she reclines on the sofa in her Pune home. She has a flight to catch in a couple of hours as she heads back to home and family in Canada. “I can’t wait to be with my grandchildren, ” she says excitedly. At 72, she has seen it all – the glory of being a Bollywood diva and its pitfalls. Unlike most of her contemporaries from the golden era of Hindi cinema, Minoo Mumtaz leads a contented life today. “My family is my strength, especially my husband who has never let me shed a single tear in our nearly 50 years of marriage. ”

It is difficult to picture her as the original item girl, who played the seductive courtesan in “Saaquiya aaj mujhe neend nahi aayegi” (Guru Dutt’s Sahib Bibi aur Ghulam), one of the best mujra sequences of all times. But she takes umbrage at being called an ‘item’ girl. “We were not ‘item’ girls, but professional dancers and actresses. I feel ashamed watching them today gyrating in scanty clothes to obscene lyrics. ”

There was something about Minoo Mumtaz, born Malka Begum, that endeared her to millions of moviegoers. It could be the smile, the nakhras, the come-hither look, but her hypnotic grace lingered long after the dance ended. Although she never rose to the height that Madhubala or Meena Kumari did, her presence in a film could not be ignored.

Mumtaz‘s performances were free-spirited and spontaneous, especially her dance numbers. This applied to her classical compositions also. “I surrendered myself to the dance director. I knew no technique but dance came easily to me, ” she says. “I would watch my father (Mumtaz Ali), a very good dancer, and mimic his moves in front of a mirror, much to my mother’s horror because she was dead against movies. ”

Mumtaz grew up in a conservative Muslim household of Nawabi descent. But the family, which once supported at least 35 residents in a huge bungalow in Mumbai, fell on hard times when Mumtaz Ali took to drinking. “I decided to help out financially although I was only 13. Those were the worst two years of my life because I also lost my mother, ” she says.

But she loved life too much to give in. “My sister and I would walk on the railway tracks from Malad, where we lived, to Mohan Studios in Andheri and wait – often in pouring rain – until producer-director Nambhai Vakil took us in. I started off with a substantial role in Sakhi Hatim, my very first film. I was paid Rs 500 for the film and Rs 200 for a dance. My price quickly shot up to Rs 800 and within three months, I bought my first car. ” Within three to four years, Mumtaz had bagged important roles including that of a heroine, with top actors of the time like Balraj Sahni.

It was her professionalism and no-nonsense attitude that took her to the top. “I was not interested in anything other than my role. I would carry my knitting to the studios and once the cameras were switched off, I would knit. Those who came to me with dishonourable intentions were shooed away, ” she says. Moreover, her brothers, especially legendary actor Mehmood, were always around to protect her.

As she speaks, Mumtaz’s slender fingers often curl up in a mudra. “Dance is in my blood, ” she says. “If I get into the mood, I can dance even today, but where are the songs, where’s the music?” She is unhappy with modern Bollywood music. “Hindi film music lacks the lyrical quality today, ” she says.

At the peak of her popularity, she married assistant director Ali S Akbar. “Although we belonged to different Muslim sects, Mehmood Bhai went ahead and organised the wedding. And, he did it in style. Parts of the Sheesh Mahal sets from Mughal-e-Azam were used to do up the wedding venue. But, Bhaijaan forbade me from acting thereafter, ” she says.

It’s been a long time since she faced the arclights, but the memories have not dimmed. “I feel sad for Meena aapa, it was she who rechristened me Minoo Mumtaz. An unhappy and childless marriage led to her collapse, she simply wasted away. She was one of the greatest actresses ever, with no nakhras!”

But she smiles at the mention of Madhubala. “She was like a sister and I was her confidante. When her romance with Dilip Kumar broke off, she turned to me. ” But Mumtaz’s first meeting with Madhubala was not all that pleasant. “She ignored me completely as I waited for our first shot together in Ek Saal Baad. But I walked up to her and asked her why she chose to behave so badly with a devoted fan. Her arrogance crumpled, and we went on to become the best of friends, ” she says.

As for her male co-stars, she has a special corner in her heart for Dev Anand. “He was a thorough gentleman and one of the most handsome men ever, ” she remembers. Guru Dutt is another actor she was very fond of. “Dada was not just a creative genius, he was very humble as a person. Each time I walked on to the sets, he would get up from his director’s chair to welcome me, and I was not even the heroine. ”

The years have flown past and Minoo Mumtaz has accepted all that came her way with a rare grace. As she gets up to leave for the airport, she flashes a smile and says, “I thank Allah for bestowing me with so much. ”